Lykken on Lending

What will it actually take to bring mortgage rates meaningfully lower? In this week’s discussion, we look beyond the latest Fed decision to examine the broader forces influencing the market, from government spending and geopolitical uncertainty to oil and diesel supply pressures, inflation, and the bond market’s response. The conversation also turns to an increasingly important issue for the secon...

A push for greater GSE credit-data transparency raises questions about whether investors could eventually evaluate mortgage risk beyond traditional FICO and VantageScore models, potentially affecting pricing, securitization, and the secondary market. ------------------------------------------------------------------ Alice Alvey , Master CMB Vice President Partner Education and Training at Union Ho...

09-22-2026 Is the Fed on The Road to "Shambala?" ------------------------- Wash away Bonds’ troubles. Wash away price pain, with the reign of Grow-a-lot. The economy is rolling along a bumpy road of inflation. So, the Fed tightens and placate the Bond vigilantes. However, nervous nellies on the short end see a fundamental shift: the Fed will raise rates much more. Will rates stay higher...

A busy week in Washington brings a Fed rate hike, key FHA and CFPB nominations, and a new AI supervisory framework aligned with MISMO’s approach to responsible AI governance. ------------------------------------------------------------- Adam DeSanctis , VP of Communications at Mortgage Bankers Association As a strategic public affairs and communications executive with nearly two decades of experie...

Everyone has a story—but too many leaders assume theirs isn’t worth telling. In this Hot Topic, David Lykken sits down with Matt Harms, founder of Pen for Hire NYC, to explore why writing a book can be one of the most powerful ways to share your experience, establish yourself as a thought leader, and leave a lasting legacy. Matt breaks down how to uncover the stories you may not realize you have,...

The Lykken on Lending Weekly Mortgage Update delivers expert commentary and timely insights from across the mortgage industry. Each episode features a curated lineup of respected thought leaders and analysts: Adam DeSanctis with the MBA Mortgage Minute , providing key updates from the Mortgage Bankers Association. Les Parker’s TMSpotlight offers a macroeconomic perspective with his signature music...

With the 10-year Treasury testing the psychologically significant 5% level, mortgage professionals are confronting a rate environment many originators have never experienced—but higher rates don't mean the opportunities disappear. In this discussion, David Lykken and the Lykken on Lending team explore why today's market requires loan officers and mortgage leaders to stop relying on rate as the pri...

Alice Alvey examines the new VantageScore 4.0 pricing framework, its differences from Classic FICO, the technology challenges facing lenders, and concerns that multiple scoring options could encourage borrowers to shop multiple applications. ------------------------------------------------------------------ Alice Alvey , Master CMB Vice President Partner Education and Training at Union Home Mortga...

Matt Graham explains how surging oil prices, inflation data, Treasury buybacks, and shifting Fed expectations drove mortgage rates sharply higher while setting the stage for another potentially volatile week. ----------------------------------------------------- Matt began as an originator in 2002. He fell in love with the idea of following MBS in real-time but felt that existing products were onl...

MBA is calling on mortgage professionals to support the #EndTriMerge campaign as FHFA considers major changes to credit reporting, including greater competition, single-file reporting, and newer credit-scoring models. ------------------------------------------------------------- Adam DeSanctis , VP of Communications at Mortgage Bankers Association As a strategic public affairs and communications e...

Artificial intelligence is generating no shortage of dramatic headlines, but how much of the fear is justified—and where do the real risks actually lie? In this week’s Weekly AI Update, me and Pavan Agarwal cut through the noise surrounding AI and examine what mortgage leaders should truly be paying attention to. From the rapid rise of agentic AI and its ability to deploy thousands of autonomous a...

The mortgage industry is entering a period where relying on the traditional agency model alone may no longer be enough. In this Hot Topic, David Lykken sits down with mortgage industry veteran Bill Dallas to explore why Non-QM and non-agency lending could become some of the industry's biggest growth opportunities over the next decade. Drawing on decades of experience spanning origination, capital...

The Lykken on Lending Weekly Mortgage Update delivers expert commentary and timely insights from across the mortgage industry. Each episode features a curated lineup of respected thought leaders and analysts: Adam DeSanctis with the MBA Mortgage Minute , providing key updates from the Mortgage Bankers Association. Les Parker’s TMSpotlight offers a macroeconomic perspective with his signature music...

09-08-2026 The 2009 Endangerment Finding..."It's Over" ------------------- Golden scams with US end. Regulation cuts are wins. Regulations have consequences. Forget hook ‘em horns, go with fart*, Bevo, fart. We can exhale* more easily now that Trump revoked the 2009 Obama-era "Endangerment Finding." It drove climate rules by defining greenhouse gases, including methane emitted by cows and CO₂ exha...

FHFA is advancing major changes to mortgage credit reporting, including full availability of VantageScore 4.0 and potential alternatives to the traditional tri-merge requirement aimed at increasing competition and lowering borrower costs. ------------------------------------------------------------- Adam DeSanctis , VP of Communications at Mortgage Bankers Association As a strategic public affairs...

Artificial intelligence may be transforming mortgage lending, but according to Pavan Agarwal, AI is only half the story. In this week’s AI Update, David Lykken and Pavan explore how blockchain could become the other half of the industry’s transformation by bringing greater certainty, transparency, security, and speed to the mortgage process. From tokenized pre-approvals and on-chain records to bor...

The mortgage industry is navigating one of the most demanding periods of transformation we’ve seen, with AI, consolidation, margin pressure, changing workforce expectations, and relentless technological disruption forcing leaders to rethink how they run their organizations. In this Hot Topic, David Lykken welcomes back Jim Brown, author of The Imperfect CEO and founder of Org Health, to explore wh...

Mortgage rates may be sitting at their highest levels in more than a year, but the mortgage industry isn’t standing still. In this week’s commentary, David Lykken and the team examine why lender confidence and industry engagement remain surprisingly strong despite a challenging rate environment, why Treasury bond buybacks aren’t delivering the relief some hoped for, and why housing supply—not gove...

AI agents are rapidly becoming everyday business tools, but mortgage companies must balance automation and innovation with cybersecurity, compliance, data protection, and better AI education. ----------------------------------------------------- Allen Pollack , Tech Consultant Allen Pollack, a Mortgage & Financial Services Technology Advisor, is a subject matter expert in the mortgage originat...

Alice Alvey examines the data behind recent FHA delinquency headlines and explains why Neighborhood Watch statistics, lender compare ratios, and FHA’s overall financial position tell a more nuanced story. ------------------------------------------------------------------ Alice Alvey , Master CMB Vice President Partner Education and Training at Union Home Mortgage She handles development of their W...

Fed Chair Kevin Warsh’s Jackson Hole inflation message shifted rate-hike expectations higher, pushing bond yields and mortgage rates toward their highest levels in more than a year. ----------------------------------------------------- Matt began as an originator in 2002. He fell in love with the idea of following MBS in real-time but felt that existing products were only scratching the surface. T...

09-01-2026 "25 Minutes to Go" For Everything to Change ------------------ And the markets’ waitin’ just to hear Warsh yell, he’s got 24 minutes to go In Jackson Hole, Warsh talked about old ways and new ways. He explained why they will be better than the old ways at meeting the Fed’s dual mandate. Will everything change after Jackson Hole? No, just the terms of the debate get altered. 4.80 & 4...

MBA and the California MBA helped reshape AB 801, replacing proposed CRA-style mandates with a more practical fair lending examination framework for mortgage lenders. ------------------------------------------------------------- Adam DeSanctis , VP of Communications at Mortgage Bankers Association As a strategic public affairs and communications executive with nearly two decades of experience, Ada...

The mortgage industry is entering a new era—one shaped by artificial intelligence, vertical integration, consolidation, expanding non-QM opportunities, and rising expectations for a better borrower experience. In this episode of Lykken on Lending , David Lykken sits down with Coby Hakalir of T3 Sixty to explore what mortgage lending could look like over the next decade and why, despite rapid techn...

The Lykken on Lending Weekly Mortgage Update delivers expert commentary and timely insights from across the mortgage industry. Each episode features a curated lineup of respected thought leaders and analysts: Adam DeSanctis with the MBA Mortgage Minute , providing key updates from the Mortgage Bankers Association. Les Parker’s TMSpotlight offers a macroeconomic perspective with his signature music...